Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) joins with the Prime Minister, Opposition Leader and Defence Minister in acknowledging the service of the more than 30,000 Defence Force personnel deployed in the Middle East since October 2001;

(2) supports the sentiment of appreciation outlined in the Prime Minister's speech at the welcome home parade for more than 250 Darwin-based soldiers marking the end of their deployment to Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan, during 2013;

(3) acknowledges the enormous sacrifice of Australia's mission in Afghanistan—during which 40 soldiers lost their lives and more than 260 personnel were injured;

(4) affirms its pride and ongoing support for the Australian Defence Force as one of the most highly trained, professional and respected forces in the world;

(5) pays tribute to these personnel through its support for the national day of commemoration to be held on 21 March 2015 to recognise the contribution and sacrifice of Australian troops who served in Afghanistan and the Middle East; and

(6) acknowledges the great courage and personal sacrifice of our Defence Force personnel and their families to keep our country safe and to build a better future for the people of Afghanistan and the broader Middle East.

There are times when saying thankyou simply does not do justice to the sentiment being expressed nor does it properly capture the sense of debt and appreciation that the speaker is attempting to convey. This is one such occasion. As the motion states, next year on 21 March there will be a national day of commemoration to formerly honour the service of the more than 30,000 Defence Force personnel who deployed to the Middle East since October 2001. It is important for all of us to look back on that time and reflect on the success of the operations in Afghanistan and in Iraq.

In October 2001, the world was still reeling at the terror attacks on the United States that left thousands dead and shook the free world to its very core. Australia was part of the broad based, multigovernmental military force put together by key allies of the United States to respond to the September 11 attacks. The coalition was tasked with breaking up the terror organisation al-Qaeda that had masterminded the American attacks. Its brief was also to hunt down al-Qaeda's leader Osama bin Laden and with an eye on the long term to reduce the risk of other strikes taking place in the future. Two years later, Australia also joined with the United States in a multination troop deployment as part of what was briefly referred to as the coalition of the willing.

While not sanctioned by the United Nations and resisted by some members in the national parliament, the Howard administration was unflinching in its support of our ally and the objectives outlined in Iraq as part of the broader objective of fighting terror. The 13 years that followed were among the longest ongoing military operations in our history. In particular, the Afghan conflict had been described as our longest war. We had deployed personnel on land, on the sea and in the air. Our P3 Orion aircraft carried out unceasing patrols of the sky, warning of missile attacks and dangerous enemy movement. Our ships kept the Gulf peaceful and, further, patrolled, and intercepted pirates and drug smugglers. On land, we have worked with 47 other nations to bring a new stability to the Middle East. Led by the Americans, our great partner in an alliance first forged in blood and fire in Darwin, we have toppled a dictator who murdered many. I will not shy away from the fact that our duty in the Middle East was also extremely hard. The preparation involved practising survival skills; being able to shoot efficiently, and to don gas masks in an instant; and becoming proficient in all of the equipment that personnel carried night and day.

A significant portion of the 31,000 Australian personnel deployed to the Middle East had passed through Robertson Barracks in the Northern Territory. Once they were deemed by their instructors to be capable of meeting the demands of this arduous posting, they were allowed to proceed to the theatre of operations. Often disaster could come out of the clear blue sky with speed and no warning—Katyusha rockets, mortar fire, machine guns; all could be directed their way. The days were long: 14 to 16 hours on duty, seven days a week. I am told that a favourite saying of personnel in the Middle East, and particularly Afghanistan, was: 'The days are long but the weeks are short.' This gives a context for the lives many troops experienced. Letters and parcels from home were a highlight. The wounding or death of someone known was a most significant event, but there was nothing left to do but to soldier on. The same applied at home, where family members not only kept the home fires burning but also provided a rock and the very foundation of faith in our family, and faith in the future. Last month, it was my pleasure to join in the last few kilometres of the 400-kilometre Families of the Fallen walk, from Mataranka to Robertson Barracks. This remarkable trek was about raising awareness of post-traumatic stress disorder as well as to raise funds for the returned soldiers to walk the Kokoda Trail. Ray and Pam Palmer are the parents of Scott Palmer, who was killed in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan in 2010. Ray and Pam have channelled their grief at Scott's death into helping servicemen and servicewomen who carry psychological scars from their deployment. The federal government also recognises the importance of post-deployment mental health support, and has in place a comprehensive range of screening and referral services to help personnel.

I would like to finish by putting on the record my thanks and my acknowledgement of the enormous sacrifice of the Australian mission in Afghanistan, and by once again affirming my pride and ongoing support for our Australian Defence Force, as one of the most highly trained, professional and respected forces in the world.

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is there a seconder for the motion?

Luke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for External Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Firstly, it is a great honour to be supporting this motion—as I was honoured recently to join the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, Bill Shorten, in welcoming home troops to Darwin. In doing so, we were also acknowledging the service of the more than 30,000 Defence Force personnel deployed in the Middle East since October 2001 under Operation SLIPPER. We were also acknowledging the 40 brave Australian soldiers whose lives were lost over that period, and the 260 personnel who have come home injured with visible injuries, and the many who have come home with disguised, or as yet undiagnosed, mental health issues. To them, we owe our great debt. It is a great honour for me to stand in this place and say that these men and women—those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice, and those men and women who have served in this theatre of operations over this very long period of time—are revered by our nation. The welcome home of more than 250 Darwin based soldiers marked the end of the deployment to Uruzgan province in Afghanistan during 2013.

It is worth making sure that we acknowledge that over the long run since 2001 we have deployed Navy assets and Air Force assets, as well as Army assets, right across the region. We need to acknowledge their enormous contributions—the previous speaker has mentioned our P3s, but there are also other Air Force assets and Navy assets which were deployed in the Gulf and the surrounding area—and the work they have been doing and continue to do in countering piracy on sea, and in intercepting drug shipments across that region. We still have troops in Afghanistan, and Australian logistic personnel also based in the Middle East in support of Operation SLIPPER who are located outside of Afghanistan, and we have detachments of patrol and transport aircraft whose personnel continue to support operations in Afghanistan, based out of Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. It is very important that we understand the sacrifice which has been made by so many on our behalf.

I also acknowledge those who have been recognised for their conspicuous courage by being awarded the Victoria Cross: Mark Donaldson, Ben Roberts-Smith and Daniel Keighran. Cameron Baird was awarded his posthumously only this year. In acknowledging this, we should accept there are many unsung heroes who were never recognised in the way these brave men have been. There are so many who have sacrificed so much. They work on our behalf and continue to work on our behalf. To them we owe our eternal gratitude.

The member for Solomon spoke about the work of Ray Palmer and his wife, Pam. We have lost six Darwin based soldiers in Afghanistan in the time that we have been there. One of the Territory lads was Scott Palmer, the son of Ray and Pam. He was operating with 2nd Commando Regiment and was lost, as we heard, in a helicopter crash. Ray was the inspiration behind Families of the Fallen recently walking 400 kilometres through my electorate, from Mataranka to Robertson Barracks, to commemorate the 40 lost in Afghanistan but also to raise funds for Kokoda walks, a very important source of focus and reconnection for veterans as they face life after service.

I also want to acknowledge a wonderful mother who is in the chamber today and who will speak next, I think. Her son I proudly met in Afghanistan as a serving soldier. I congratulate him for his service to our great country. One of my staff, Luke Gosling, himself a former soldier, spent time working with Ray and his wife, Pam, and with the families and comrades.

I want to finish by talking about the important role of the Department of Veterans' Affairs in looking after our men and women after they have returned from service. The Department of Veterans' Affairs and the Department of Defence are joined at the hip, as they should be, because it is extremely important that we understand that these veterans remain the clients of the Department of Veterans' Affairs for the remainder of their lives. Whatever state they are in, whatever help they require, we need to make sure that this government and this country stand beside them and make sure that the Department of Veterans' Affairs is appropriately resourced to look after their short-term and long-term interests and those of their families. I wish to salute all those serving men and women who have done this nation proud in their service.

Luke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a former major in the Army, and having served for 15 years, the place of the Defence Force in the history of our nation is very special to me—no more so than when I was elected to this place and the outcomes of national policy resulted in 40 deaths and 260 wounded in the war in Afghanistan. But that has always been the way. In this parliament we decide what needs to be done and the Defence Force goes out there and gets the job done. They do as ordered but always with distinction and honour. That is why our highly professional service men and women are so well regarded and indeed sought after when fighting is required.

The traditions of our troops, of course, date back to the war in Sudan and the Boer wars, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Malayan emergency and confrontation and then Vietnam. Our service men and women have been in Cambodia, Somalia, Bougainville, the Solomons and then on to Afghanistan and across the Middle East, where 30,000 of our Defence Force personnel have served with distinction since 2001.

I would like to pay tribute to each of those 40 men that lost their lives in Afghanistan. Andrew Russell was a 33-year-old sergeant in the SAS when he died from his wounds in a vehicle mine in February 2002. David Pearce, 41, was killed when serving on 8 October 2007. Matthew Locke MG was 33 and a sergeant in the SAS when on 25 October 2007 he was injured in a firefight with the Taliban. He was shot in the chest and he died later from his wounds. Luke Worsley, a 26-year-old commando, was shot and killed on 23 November 2007.

Jason Marks, a 27-year-old commando, was killed after an intense firefight with Taliban insurgents on 27 April 2008. Sean McCarthy, 25, was a signalman in the SAS. He died from his wounds after the vehicle he was in was attacked by a roadside bomb on 8 July 2008. Michael Fussell, a 25-year-old lieutenant in the commandos, was killed by an IED whilst on patrol on 27 November 2008.

Greg Sher, a 30-year-old commando, was killed in a rocket attack on 4 January 2009. Matthew Hopkins, 21, an infantry corporal, was fatally injured on 16 March 2009 while on patrol. Brett Till, a 31-year-old sergeant, an EOD tech, was killed on 19 March 2009 while trying to defuse an IED. Benjamin Ranaudo, 22, an infantry private, was killed on 18 July 2009 by an antipersonnel explosive device.

Jacob Moerland, 21, a sapper, was killed on 7 June 2010 by an IED. Darren Smith, 25, in the same unit, subsequently died of wounds after being evacuated. His explosives detection dog, Herbie, was also killed by the blast. Scott Palmer, 27, and Timothy Aplin, 38, were privates and were both killed in the crash of a Blackhawk helicopter on 21 June 2010. Benjamin Chuck, 27, a private, died of his injuries following that crash. Nathan Bewes, 23, an infantry private, was killed by an improvised explosive device on 9 July 2010. Jason Brown, 29, an SAS trooper, was shot and killed on 13 August 2010. Grant Kirby, 35, and Tomas Dale, 21, were infantry privates and were killed by an IED on 20 August 2010. Jared MacKinney, 28, a lance corporal in the 6th Battalion, was shot and killed during the Battle of Derapet on 24 August 2010.

Richard Atkinson, 22, an engineer corporal, was killed by an improvised bomb on 2 February 2011. Jamie Larcombe, 21, a sapper in the 1st Combat Engineer Regiment, was shot on 19 February 2011. Brett Wood, MG, DSM, 32, a commando sergeant, was killed by an improvised explosive device on 23 May 2011. Andrew Jones, 25, a lance corporal, was shot by a member of the Afghan National Army on his way to guard duty on 30 May 2011. Marcus Case, 27, a lieutenant in aviation, was killed when a Chinook helicopter crashed during resupply on 30 May 2011. Rowan Robinson, 23, was killed in action on 6 June 2011. Todd Langley, 35, a commando sergeant, was shot and killed on 4 July 2011. Matthew Lambert, 26, of the infantry, was killed by an IED on 22 August 2011. Bryce Duffy, 26, an artillery captain; Ashley Birt, a 22-year-old engineer; and Luke Gavin, a 27-year-old infantry lance corporal, were shot and killed by a member of the Afghan National Army on 29 October 2011.

Blaine Diddams, MG, 40, a sergeant in the SAS, was shot and killed during an engagement with insurgents on 2 July 2012. Daniel Gallagher, 23, was killed in a helicopter crash in August 2012. Mervyn John McDonald, 30, a lance corporal, was killed in the same crash. Stjepan Milosevic, 40, a lance corporal in the 2nd/14th Light Horse, was shot and killed by a member of the Afghan National Army on 30 August 2012. Robert Poate, 23, a private, was shot and killed in the same incident. James Martin was shot and killed in the same incident. Scott James Smith, an engineer corporal, was killed in an IED explosion in 2012.

They served well. Rest in peace. They served their nation well for a just cause and a better world.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

John Curtin once said:

All governments, in all countries, and whatever their policy or label, profess to favour international peace. All claim to be non-aggressive; all claim to be armed purely for defensive purposes. Not one admits the desire for war, but all are ready for participation in war.

And that is very true of this nation. Traditionally, it is the House that decides if this nation goes to war, yet we are not the ones who bravely enact these decisions. It is the ordinary men and women of our electorates who stand up and are ready to serve and, like many parliamentarians and the people we have heard from today, men and women from my electorate of Bendigo did serve in Afghanistan and in Iraq. Today I wish to acknowledge and thank them for their service.

I would like to acknowledge 23-year-old army medic Lance Corporal Jessica Bailey, from Bendigo. Bailey worked in the Army's 8 Close Health Company in Darwin, and at the peak of operations Bailey and her team were working 16-hour days nursing multiple trauma patients. Bailey also assisted with patrols outside the wire with the EOD guys on demolition duties, but it never occurred to this young soldier that she would be a trailblazer for women in combat. The armed services, the ADF, continue to challenge and continue to give opportunities to our young people in the most dangerous circumstances. In an interview she said that the deployment has been a great opportunity and she believes that she will continue to have further opportunities with the Army. Lance Corporal Bailey has a younger brother in the Army, serving in the 7th Battalion, from Adelaide, and two ridiculously proud parents in Bendigo. Like many Bendigonians, Bailey was proud to serve.

Our area has a proud tradition of young people ready to stand and serve when required. Noel Edwards, a 20-year-old Bendigo engineer, enlisted swiftly on the day that the First World War was declared in August 1914. He was the first in line at the Bendigo Town Hall when recruiting occurred. He was there before the doors opened. On 25 April 1915, Edwards struggled ashore, like so many other young men from Bendigo. Whether it be in the First World War or as the citizens of today, Bendigo people have always been ready to stand up and be part of the Australian armed services.

But it is not just the women and men who have served that I wish to acknowledge today. We also have a proud tradition in Bendigo of supporting our men and women in the equipment that protects them whilst they are overseas. The Bendigo Bushmaster has contributed to saving at least 300 lives in Afghanistan and Iraq. This vehicle was designed in Bendigo. It is something that we are proud of, to know that our men and women working at this facility helped contribute towards our armed services. This vehicle was upgraded at the request of our serving soldiers. These improvements helped save further lives on deployment in Afghanistan. It is a great success story. Apart from creating jobs and continuing to secure those jobs, it has also helped to save lives.

Whether it be by building the equipment that helps protect our armed services or through our men and women, even in my electorate we have a proud and strong heritage and commitment to ensuring that our nation has strong armed services. There is a strong partnership between Thales and Soldier On, which supports wounded and sick soldiers. Recently, at a ceremony at Bendigo, Soldier On chairman Peter was there with a number of family members to thank the people who worked in the facility for the production of the Bushmaster. Every week there are families and wounded soldiers who turn up at Bendigo Thales to thank the men and women who built the vehicles, saying that without the Bushmaster they might not be alive today.

Anzac Day this year was one of our first opportunities to thank returning soldiers at the end of the conflict in Afghanistan. I was proud to be part of the Mount Macedon Dawn Service, where a veteran, a local Afghan veteran on deployment, laid 40 red roses on behalf of the Mount Macedon Dawn Service and the local community to say thank you in acknowledgement. It is important that we acknowledge and thank and recognise the service of our men and women who form our Australian Defence services. I, too, support this motion, salute their service and thank them.

Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to support this motion and, in doing so, congratulate the member for Solomon. I know that she is a great support to the many troops stationed in Darwin, particularly at Robertson Barracks and Larrakeyah Barracks. She is there for them when they need her, and she has spoken up many times in this place in support of their needs.

In my maiden speech I mentioned the fact that it is the government's decision whether we send people to war. We have wonderful Australian Defence personnel, men and women, who are prepared to put their lives on the line for our democracy and for our freedom of speech. It is our decision in this place whether they go and where they go. In the first week after my election, before I had even been sworn in in this place, I had the sad opportunity to go to several services in memory of some of the soldiers who had died who were members of 6th Battalion RAR, part of Gallipoli Barracks, at Enoggera, in my electorate of Ryan. I attended the memorial services and funerals for privates Tomas Dale and Grant Kirby and for Lance Corporal Jared MacKinney in those first few weeks. Let us never forget these brave Australians and all of our troops and veterans who have answered the call whenever their country has asked. Equally, we must never forget that these courageous men and women have volunteered, knowing that they put their own lives at risk to ensure our safety.

The Australian troops have spent many years in Afghanistan and the Middle East, but they have also achieved great things. We must always look at what legacy they have left and at what they have achieved in their time there. I refer in particular to Uruzgan province, where Australian soldiers did a lot of work and leave behind some great assets, including 26 schools for girls. This is an area where girls were not going to school and could not go there safely. I have just come from the House of Representatives chamber where we spoke about the Nigerian terrorist groups trying stop girls going to school. Yet our troops have left behind 26 schools for girls. We have also left behind over 200 kilometres of sealed roads and also bridges so that people can get around their country. We have left behind doctors and nurses and, hopefully, some better democracy and better representation, as well as a safer place for women.

I was very fortunate, Mr Deputy Speaker Porter—and I know that you know what a strong advocate I am for the ADF parliamentary program—to be able to go over to Afghanistan and be with our troops. The member for Solomon went to the Middle East at the same time. I was with our troops at Al Minhad, at Tarin Kot and then at Kandahar. It was quite an eye-opener for me. I thought I was going to be very clever and go there before my son was deployed—possibly a mistake in hindsight. Our soldiers, our men and women, did the most amazing job in an incredibly difficult situation. I look in particular at the Role 3 hospital in Kandahar, where they said that, if you still had a heartbeat, you would live; you would come out alive. That was because of the great work of our volunteer doctors and nurses who were participating in running, with the Americans, the Role 3 hospital there. I saw the work they did in Tarin Kot. Unfortunately, I was there during fighting season so they would not let me outside the gates—probably a good idea in hindsight. I have the most utmost respect and admiration for our service men and women.

As the great-granddaughter of Australia's longest-serving defence minister, as the daughter of a fighter pilot and prisoner of war survivor from World War II and, as the member for Lingiari said, as the mother of a serving soldier who has served in Afghanistan, I have to pay tribute to the wonderful job that our men and women do in the services. I am proud of the contribution they have made in Australia's name and of the contribution made by thousands of Australian service men and women who have individually helped to make that contribution. We expect the best from our troops and they always give it. To all of those troops and, importantly, to their families, I thank you. To our special forces, who continue nonstop in a relentless and magnificent manner, I acknowledge the huge contribution you make against all odds.

I seek leave to table the list of soldiers who gave their lives in Afghanistan fighting for Australia so that their names are on the permanent record of our parliament. Lest we forget.

Leave granted.

Alan Griffin (Bruce, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the motion moved by the member for Solomon in acknowledging the service of more than 30,000 Defence Force personnel who have served in the Middle East since 2001. I would also like to, as part of that process, share in the acknowledgement of those who played the ultimate sacrifice for our country—some 40 who lost their lives and some 260 who have been wounded as a result of their service. I also support the sentiment in the remarks made by the Prime Minister at the welcoming home parade of more than 250 troops in Darwin who had returned from their service in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province in commending the services of more than 30,000 Defence Force personnel who have been deployed since 2001.

Australia has played a significant part in the reshaping of Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban in 2001 and the commencement of Operation Slipper, when the first contingent of special forces troops departed. Since 2001, we have seen an Afghanistan where children—most importantly, young girls—have been able to access education more easily, the media has been made freer, and the most basic access to education and health care have been afforded to women—something that was scarce in Afghanistan under the Taliban.

Afghanistan still remains one of the most dangerous countries on earth and there are still severe problems with poverty, violence and insecurity. This is evident when looking at the dangers so many Afghans faced when carrying out their democratic right to vote in this year's election. However, the efforts of our service men and women should be noted, and they should be congratulated for the work that they have done. They have strived to ensure a brighter future for Afghanistan and they have certainly contributed greatly to the number of successes that have occurred in Afghanistan over the past decade.

I will just give a few examples, because often it is hard to quantify the achievements that have been made when there is so much bad news around. For example, in education, the number of schools has increased from 34 in 2006 to around 200 active schools in 2013, including 26 girls-only schools and 19 co-ed schools. Community based education classes have been established in the most difficult-to-access areas, providing 2,500 children, including more than 500 girls, with access to basic education. Active students are up fivefold from 2006 to 2013, with over 60,000 children attending school, 15 per cent of whom are girls. Five hundred and sixteen students graduated, including 36 girls, in 2012. There are about 1,500 teachers in the province, including 77 female ones—a 15 per cent increase from 2010. And the first university campus in Uruzgan opened in 2011, a branch of the Kandahar University.

Turning to some examples in health: health facilities have increased from nine in 2006 to 29 facilities in 2013, so there are now 29 public healthcare facilities and 322 health posts in operation throughout the province, staffed by 106 healthcare professionals and 493 volunteer community health workers. There is improved maternal health care: up to 80 per cent of women now receive at least one antenatal visit, up from 50 per cent in 2007, and 24 new midwives and 26 nurses have been trained.

So, as we can see, there have been advances. But, as we also concede, in modern Afghanistan it is going to be a difficult row to hoe. But, frankly, having been there and seen the work that our troops have done, I think that they can all be very proud of that work. The professionalism, skill, and empathy and compassion that they have displayed since 2001 in what has been a very dangerous and inhospitable environment is something they can all be very proud of. I had the privilege, as I mentioned, of going to Kandahar and Tarin Kot and also to the base at Al Minhad and seeing firsthand the work that was being done in 2011. Also, in 2012, I had the opportunity to spend a few days on board HMAS Melbourne in the Gulf and to see the work that was being done by our naval forces as part of the multinational force with respect to security in that area. They are all serving and they have all served in the very finest Anzac tradition, and it is something that we should remember and should applaud into the future.

I will pick up on a couple of comments from an earlier speaker. We know that when we send people to war, when we send them into harm's way, they get harmed—we know that. What is really important is that when they come back we acknowledge that service but also encourage them to seek the assistance that they may need. Some people can go through what they have gone through and it will not impact on them greatly, but many will bear the scars into the future. I urge anyone who was part of our forces there who is feeling that they have got problems, to embrace the capacity to get help through government services like DVA. It is a difficult row to hoe for all who face those sorts of challenges, but we as a nation owe them a great debt, and we need to ensure that they get the assistance that they need.

Andrew Nikolic (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I congratulate and join the member for Solomon in acknowledging the service of more than 30,000 of our troops who have deployed to the Middle East since October 2001. As someone who deployed on the first commitment to Afghanistan in 2001, I was reminded that 12 years had passed when I welcomed my daughter Captain Julia Nikolic back home from her second tour of Afghanistan late last year. 12 years is a long commitment in any war. During that time, we suffered 260 serious casualties and 40 of our troops were killed fighting Taliban insurgents.

Accordingly, I acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of our troops and their families. Their contribution has been not only to safeguard our country but to help deliver a better future for the people of Afghanistan and the Middle East. I acknowledge also the internal struggle now being waged by many veterans—private issues often exacerbated by isolation, both real and perceived. As a parliament, as a community, we can and must do more to understand and lessen their burden through practical and inclusive engagement with the veteran community. We and our predecessors in this parliament sent these people to war. We must and will now aid their recovery from wounds, whether physical or psychological. We must and will continue to honour and thank them—an example was the heartfelt public thanks of the Prime Minister when speaking to 250 Darwin-based veterans newly returned from Afghanistan in late 2013—but we will seek to do so in a very Australian way, which is practical, low key and plain speaking, and which befits, as it were, the pragmatic nature of its audience. And while the troops may not admit to it publicly it is generally appreciated by them.

With this in mind, the government intends holding a national day of commemoration on 21 March 2015 to recognise Australian troops who served in Afghanistan and the Middle East area of operations and to affirm our pride and continuing support for the Australian Defence Force as one of the most highly trained, professional and respected military forces in the world. We are lucky to have them, and to enjoy the safety and wellbeing that our troops, both past and present, have helped deliver. Their service—their sacrifice—is very literally our life and liberty.

In closing, please allow me one final reflective comment about defence families, a subject of which I have precious personal and practical experience. Very regrettably, defence families are sometimes forgotten when it comes to public recognition. But, for all intents and purposes, they have arguably the most to lose in any military commitment. Because of this, partners and children also serve—and at times suffer—when this House places their loved ones in harm's way. And, later still, when the fighting has stopped, they are often left to put the pieces back together, to reshape family life completely after the death of a loved one or to help restore war ravaged sensibilities. For the most part, the only real means these families have to achieve this, is unconditional love, support, and understanding. They know better than most that war changes everything it touches, most especially human beings. In war, nations and statesmen win, lose or eventually agree the status quo and go home. But individuals, and especially families, always lose. The result is often quiet suffering, largely hidden, and an enduring and melancholy reality and future. In Australia's case the burden is now carried exclusively by professional military volunteers and their families. The age of large conscript armies is forever history. That is why a number of our veterans have done as many as 10 combat tours in Afghanistan. We in this House would all do well to remember these practical realities.

On that note, it gives me much pleasure to acknowledge and honour our troops. I commend their sustained example and that of their families as being one sublimely etched by service, sacrifice, honour and purpose beyond self. Theirs is a very high standard, matched by some, but never bettered. Our recognition of them, their commitment and dedication is the very least they deserve. I thank the House.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I agree with every word of your motion on Defence Force personnel, Acting Deputy Speaker Griggs. I commend you for moving it and every other speaker for supporting it. At a time when political disagreement is otherwise fierce, I am pleased that when it comes to recognition of our defence forces there can be a display of bipartisanship like this.

There was also a very moving display of bipartisan support when the Prime Minister and the opposition leader stood together in Tarin Kowt late last year to mark our military contribution to the security of that part of Afghanistan. But the enduring image of that day was not of two politicians but of two hands inter-locked: one belonging to the Chief of the Defence Force, the other belonging to the mother of one of the 40 souls lost in Afghanistan since 2001. That image hangs now hangs in many places, including on the wall of the command headquarters for Joint Task Force 633 at the Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, from where Australia oversees its commitment to the Middle East area of operations and its presence in Afghanistan, Qatar, Bahrain and elsewhere throughout that very difficult region.

Every Australian is reared on our history of military heroism, but few get to see the modern incarnation of that commitment at work. That is why I consider myself privileged to have been able to spend a week with our forces in Afghanistan and in the Middle East very recently. I want to take the opportunity to thank the Commander of JTF633, Major General Craig Orme, for this opportunity and the members for Petrie and Boothby and Senator Smith, who accompanied me.

We were struck by two things in particular: the quality of our people and the diversity of the tasks asked of them, from piloting unmanned surveillance planes out of Kandahar Airfield, and Hercules transports, to training the Afghan military and police, advising on intelligence matters, providing security, guiding up-armoured SUVs around the streets of Kabul, intercepting billions of dollars worth of narcotics on the sea, combating piracy, policing the skies, identifying and defusing ballistics, healing the sick and operating on the wounded, and much more. If there is one message that our men and women in harm's way in Afghanistan wanted us to relay, it is this: despite the transitioning of our mission, we still have hundreds of Australians working to make Afghanistan more secure—a place where little girls can go to school, as the member for Ryan mentioned; where small businesses can thrive, free of intimidation; where violence is an exception rather than a norm of Afghan life; and where the economy is less reliant on aid and drugs and more reliant on the talents and toil of the local people, who have been burdened for too long by conflict and carnage.

Despite progress, there is still a long way to go. When my colleagues and I were in Kandahar, we had a tragic reminder that Afghanistan is still a very dangerous place when we attended a memorial service for five British brothers whose lives were taken in a helicopter incident just before we arrived. In Kabul, we were reminded of the threat still posed by improvised explosive devices, the infamous IEDs, as reports came in of Afghan nationals destroyed by these gutless weapons of Taliban and extremist choice.

A culture of selflessness and sacrifice and the attitude and aptitude that Australians bring to the task over there are all reasons why we are such a sought-after partner in the planning and prosecution of joint efforts. It is not as well known or well appreciated that Australians are embedded into all levels of leadership of ISAF and other coalition bodies, working at the pointy end of our partnerships, respected and revered. In this sense, our contribution to Afghanistan since 2001 sits in a much more expansive context, and we should see our commitment there in that broader foreign policy context as well because, even if the dust were to settle in Afghanistan, challenges would still remain beyond in troubled parts of Pakistan and Iran and throughout pockets of the Middle East and northern Africa.

Our entire nation is better off because of the work that the Australian Defence Force do to secure the lives and livelihoods of others, wherever they are sent. So I thank those I spent time with in Afghanistan, the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain for the opportunity to see them work. As ambassadors for our country in a troubled part of the world, they bring credit to our nation and its people. And, like the 40 souls we have lost and those who have come home with other scars, obvious and not so obvious and which require our ongoing care, the contribution of 30,000 Australians will never be forgotten by the country they serve and have served with such distinction and such honour.

Debate adjourned.